YAML / JSON / TOML Converter
Convert between YAML, JSON, and TOML formats with validation and formatting.
server: host: 0.0.0.0 port: 8080 database: driver: postgres host: localhost port: 5432 name: myapp logging: level: info format: json
{
"server": {
"host": "0.0.0.0",
"port": 8080
},
"database": {
"driver": "postgres",
"host": "localhost",
"port": 5432,
"name": "myapp"
},
"logging": {
"level": "info",
"format": "json"
}
}YAML vs JSON vs TOML — When to Use Which?
YAML, JSON, and TOML are all widely used data serialization formats. While they can represent similar data structures, each has distinct advantages depending on the context.
YAML is preferred for configuration files (Docker Compose, Kubernetes manifests, Ansible playbooks, GitHub Actions) due to its human-readable syntax, support for comments, and minimal punctuation.
JSON is the standard for API communication, data storage, and programmatic data exchange. It's stricter, has wider tooling support, and is natively parsed by JavaScript.
TOML (Tom's Obvious, Minimal Language) is designed for configuration files. Used by Rust (Cargo.toml), Python (pyproject.toml), Hugo, and many modern tools. It has a flat, INI-like syntax with support for nested tables and typed values.
Format Comparison
| Feature | YAML | JSON | TOML |
|---|---|---|---|
| Comments | Yes (#) | No | Yes (#) |
| Nesting | Indentation | Braces/brackets | Dotted keys / [tables] |
| Typed values | Implicit | string, number, bool, null | string, int, float, bool, datetime |
| Multi-line strings | Yes (| and >) | No (escaped) | Yes (""") |
| Common use | K8s, Docker, CI/CD | APIs, configs, data | Rust, Python, Hugo |
TOML Example
[server] host = "0.0.0.0" port = 8080 [database] driver = "postgres" host = "localhost" port = 5432 name = "myapp" [logging] level = "info" format = "json"